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    • 2013 Publication

PROHIBITED SCIENTIFIC TERMS

Editor’s Note: In this piece, Archie Caride (‘19) compellingly explains why certain terms like “fact”, “true”, “proven”, and “guess” should not be used in scientific communities.
The concept of terms that cannot be used in a scientific context should be more widely known. Terms such as “fact”, “true”, “prove”, “proven”, or “guess” are not acceptable to be used within a chemistry classroom setting (which acts as a manifestation of the science world), and therefore are not acceptable to be used in the science community and world. Each of these terms have different definitions and different reasons for why they are prohibited within science. Each term also has different consequences if they are used. These consequences can hurt the user of the terms in different ways: the use of the terms could damage the credibility of the user, they could damage the perception of the user, and they could completely misportray the meaning that the user was attempting to convey. Each of these terms have replacements that can be used instead which are correct and convey the actual meaning of what the user was trying to say.

You may ask, why would those terms be unacceptable? If you complete an experiment and come to a conclusion about what has happened, haven’t you “proven” something? Or, if you are making a conjecture or an inference, is that not the same thing as “guessing”? Firstly, I will address the terms “fact”, “true”, “prove”, and “proven”. While these are tied to “guess”, they have a few different reasons for being prohibited from use. Within science, ideas are always being built upon and are everchanging. One day we could have an idea that we all accept as an explanation for something, but tomorrow a different idea could supplant it. Therefore, no idea or concept within science can be considered “fact” or “truth” because that suggests a definitiveness that cannot be changed or debunked. This also means that a concept cannot be “proven” because that would mean that the concept was beyond doubt and therefore could not be disproven. Not many people know or understand this, but it is essential that they do. Using these words creates an image of the user that is not educated or learned in scientific diction or descriptive language.
​

Instead of using this incorrect language, there are other words that are more accurate and that should be used. In place of “true” use “widely accepted”, instead of saying that something has been “proven”, say that the “data supports” it, and instead of “fact” use “data” or “observation”. These alternatives provide for doubt in your argument and are not definitive; they allow for more data or experiments to disprove or supplant your argument. Using the word “guess” also creates problems in science. According to the definition of “guess”, a “guess” must be made without sufficient information, however, when someone uses the word “guess” in science, they usually mean that their guess is based on some data or an experiment. So, in that case, the word “guess” is not the correct word to use. A more appropriate word choice would be to “extrapolate” or to “infer”. These words make sense because, when used, it means that you are going off of recorded data and experiments that have built up to the inference or extrapolation. Many people make the mistake of using these words, thus undermining their arguments and intellect, which is why the appropriate words should be more widely known.
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  • Home
  • Who We Are
  • HOW TO SUBMIT
  • Past Publications
    • 2019 Publication >
      • Scientific Research
      • Mathematical Exploration
      • Scientific Exploration
      • Computer Science
    • 2018 Publication >
      • Artistic Creations
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Exploration
      • Scientific Research
    • 2017 Publication >
      • Artistic Creations
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Exploration
      • Reactions and Responses
      • Scientific Research
    • 2016 Publication >
      • Historical and Current Explanations
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations
      • Scientific Research
      • Reactions and Responses
      • Artistic Creations
    • 2015 Publication >
      • Historical and Current Explanations >
        • Bell Curves
        • Birds Vs. Turbines
        • Energy in the Obama Era
        • The Future of Neuroscience
        • Gender Gap in Math
        • GMOs--Yes or No?
        • The History of Minecraft: How a Swedish Indie Game Came to Dominate the World
        • The Effect of Prozac on the Brain
        • Philae Lander's Discovery of Organic Molecules
        • Advantages and Disadvantages of Wind Turbines
        • Your Own Worst Enemy: An Overview of Lupus
        • The Methylhex Ban
        • The Effect of Lyme Disease on the Immune system
        • Infectious Mononucleosis
        • Replacing CFCs
        • The Switch
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations >
        • The 43rd Figure
        • The Clock
        • The Collatz Conjecture
        • Constructing a Soccer Ball
        • Determining how Ballparks Affect Batter's Ability to Create Hits
        • The Rotating Conundrum
        • Pythagorean Puzzle
        • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations
        • Kinetics Lab
        • Math in the Restaurant Business
        • Math as a Vessel for Social Change
        • Sustainability of Bottled Vs. Tap Water
        • Thoughts on the Lottery
        • Understanding Player Efficiency Rating
      • Scientific Research >
        • Communicating With Computers
        • The Mystery of Asthma
        • The Nanoscopic War Against Cancer
        • Phytochemistry
        • Solving the energy crisis with Intermediate Band Solar Cells
        • A Pain That Never Ends
        • Rapamycin Resistance
        • Ampacity of a Single Core Horizontal Cable
        • Morphological Properties of Texting Acronym Formation
        • cGAS and STING Expression
      • Reactions and Responses >
        • Can Humans Survive the Climate Crisis?
        • My Experience as a Teacher's Assistant
        • Ted Talk Responses
        • Teens For Food Justice
      • Artistic Creations >
        • Chandelier
        • Deltoidal Hexacontrahedon
        • Dodecahedron Card Trick
        • Eye of the Triangle
        • Free Radric Delantic Davis
        • The Grid
        • What Does A Randomly Composed Song Sound Like?
        • Science Wing Mural
    • 2014 Publication >
      • Cover Photo
      • Artistic Creations >
        • Art Using the Fibonacci Sequence
        • Computer Generated Architecture and Designs
        • Mathematical Landscape
        • Math Art
        • Math in Music
      • Historical and Current Explanations >
        • Algae Bio-Fuel
        • An Energy Alternative
        • Clean Energy In Transportation
        • Calorie Restriction
        • Creating Energy in the Modern World
        • Dietary Intervention Impact on Gut Microbial Gene Richness
        • Earthly Applications for NASA Technology
        • Explaining Relative Motion
        • Exploring Artificial Inteligence
        • Gamma Function
        • How Leaves Work
        • Hydrogen Fuel Cells
        • Music and Brain Development
        • Programming Calculators
        • The Science of Microsatellites
        • Sci-Fi Taser
        • Sloane's Gap
        • Sustainable Energy: Why Some Ideas Shine Brighter than Others
        • Understanding The Galvanic Cell
        • The Virus: Our Unforeseen Philosopher's Stone
        • What Are Fuel Cells and How Do They Work?
      • Mathematic and Scientific Explorations >
        • Astrocytes Expressing ALS-Linked Mutated SOD1 Release Factors Selectively Toxic to Motor Neurons
        • Big Bang
        • Dictyostelium Discoideum
        • The Future of Solar Cell Technology
        • And Many More...
      • Reactions and Responses >
        • Alternative Energy Sources, New but Unused
        • An Insight Into the Curious World of Ethnobotany
        • Challenging What We Think We Know
        • The Current State of American Education
        • Discovering New Numbers
        • Interview With an Architect
        • Life of Pi Response
        • Mathematical Art Video Commentary
        • Missing from Science Class
        • The Museum of Math
        • The Inside Scoop on a Real Mathematician
    • 2013 Publication